CHENNAI: The State capital will soon become home to 19,500 employees of Taiwanese electronics contract manufacturing giant Foxconn, a leading assembler for Apple phones in Tamil Nadu.
According to a Memorandum of Understanding signed with SIPCOT, a total of 30.83 acres of land at SIPCOT Vallam Vadagal Industrial Park will be used for industrial housing of 19,500 employees of Foxconn.
This comes after the Industries Department sanctioned Structural Package of Assistance to Foxconn Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development Private Limited for setting up a manufacturing project on an investment of Rs 2,500 crore in six years and to provide 25,000 direct and outsourced jobs within the project site.
Apple Inc will begin assembling its top-end iPhones in India through the local unit of Foxconn. It has been given 150-acres on Sipcot Electronics Hardware SEZ facility at Sriperumbudur. Apple started production in February this year in Chennai.
Foxconn plans to invest up to $1 billion where the Taiwanese contract manufacturer assembles Apple iPhones. The move, the scale of which has not previously been reported, is part of a quiet and gradual production shift by Apple away from China.
A sipcot spokesman said that request for a dormitory facility for the employees is one of the sanctioned incentives. This project aims at providing affordable rental accommodation with supporting infrastructure to employees.
The project will consist of 13 blocks and each one will have stilt and 10 floors. The project will include common facilities and amenities such as supply of potable water, stormwater drains, solid waste management, rainwater harvesting and solar energy utilisation.
Provisions for recreational facilities such as badminton and volleyball courts for outdoor game activities are also planned in the Industrial Housing Project.The project will have a dispensary, shopping complex and supermarket. The accommodation units shall be provided with required furnishing.
The project is envisaged to be developed in two phases. Phase I is expected to be completed in March 2023. This includes seven blocks residential complex and two blocks of commercial complex and other common facilities. Phase II, which includes six blocks residential complex, will be completed in March 2024.